That slap was undeniably heavy! Instantly, the fellow’s head spun around his neck like a top.

It spun until phantom images of his face filled every direction, yet bizarrely, the body beneath the neck remained perfectly still… Startled, Jun Mo Xie burst into the tent assigned to the Zhan family like an oncoming slaughter god. A series of sharp cracks followed in quick succession, and then he emerged, face grim with cold killing intent, disappearing in a single stride.

The head of the Zhan family member who had received the slap continued to rotate ceaselessly on his neck… After a long, long pause, it slowly stopped, and with a sickening thud, the severed head dropped onto the ground. The neck had been twisted into something as thin as a single sinew, not even a trickle of blood managing to escape… Mo Wu Dao stared at Jun Mo Xie’s retreating figure, which had vanished in an instant, frozen in stunned silence for a moment before turning to look at the Zhan family master who had been conversing pleasantly with them just moments before.

The headless body still stood erect, and Mo Wu Dao’s eyes were now wide with sheer terror! A mere slap!

A Saint-level expert, a rank higher than himself, was dead just like that—killed bafflingly, with a manner of death so gruesome, so utterly bizarre! It was as if a rubber band, stretched past its breaking point by an external force, had finally snapped under the unbearable tension… The surroundings fell into absolute silence!

Everyone witnessing this utterly strange scene had their mouths agape, sucking in the cold air in sharp gasps. Those who came to attend the gathering at the Evil Monarch’s residence were, at the very least, regional magnates.

Killing a man or two was practically routine, old hat, for them. Yet, this bizarre situation was something none of them had ever encountered!

However, as confusion rippled through the crowd, dull, strange thump-thump sounds suddenly emanated from within the Zhan family’s tent. The crowd surged forward, pulling back the canvas flap which still fluttered slightly.

At that moment, everyone froze like statues, and then someone immediately turned away, retching loudly. Inside the tent, the four or five members of the Zhan family present were now unequivocally dead!

Two of them could be seen to have been standing, now sprawled on the ground; the other three were positioned variously—one sitting, one lounging sideways, and one still holding a posture of a slight bow… Clearly, all five were caught mid-gesture of a formal welcome to the great Lord of Evil; traces of astonishment and delight still lingered on their faces! But every single one of them bore a bloodied hole through the center of their chest!

Strike must hit, hit must kill, one strike to finish, one strike to end! Jun Mo Xie’s movements had evidently reached a terrifying speed that even experts of this caliber could not react to in time!

Everything had concluded in that single instant; thus, even in death, they retained the positions they held just before their breath ceased. The region of the heart in their chests was pierced clean through from front to back!

Blood seemed to have nowhere to linger, pouring out from the openings on both sides, pooling into a crimson spring on the ground, which then trickled and meandered away. After a brief moment of stunned silence, the three corpses held in their varied poses slowly collapsed… Everyone covered their mouths, daring not to utter even a soft cry, and retreated tip-toeing out.

What place was this? This was the private tent of the Zhan family of the Misty Illusionary Manor!

The Zhan family—one of the eight great families of the Misty Illusionary Manor! Their power and influence were on a scale that ordinary folk could not even conceive, rivaling any of the Three Great Sacred Grounds!

Yet, the envoy from such a powerful lineage had just been ruthlessly and completely slaughtered by the Evil Monarch, Jun Mo Xie, in broad daylight! If one were to suffer retribution for mere curiosity over this… That would bring about a disaster that could wipe out nine generations!

Just as the onlookers were retreating, a soft plop sound echoed from the doorway. The corpse of the Zhan family expert whose head had been slapped off finally fell.

It lay flat on the ground, its limbs sprawling outward. Without a head, it could not form the character for ‘Great’ (), at best resembling the character for ‘No’ (), though the central vertical stroke was a bit too short… And this corpse, astonishingly, had still not leaked a drop of blood… it remained completely sealed within the body!

With a sudden whoosh, everyone scattered like birds and beasts! Even Mo Wu Dao and the other two returned to their lodgings with heavy expressions.

Regarding the events that transpired, everyone tacitly agreed to keep their mouths shut. In the expression of the Evil Monarch, everyone sensed that this time, the Evil Monarch was likely about to unleash an unprecedented, massive storm!

A storm indeed brewed. But the greatest storm currently brewing was within the heart of the Evil Monarch himself… His Lordship the Evil Monarch was frustrated!

Conflicted! In short, deeply unhappy and discontented!

He had shown the utmost sincerity, yet attracted a host of parasitic onlookers. What kind of situation was this… And maddeningly, he couldn't just kill them all—what terrible luck!

Miao Xiao Miao slowly awoke, feeling waves of heart-wrenching pain surge through her. She had forcefully circulated her Profound Arts earlier, severely damaging her meridians, finally reversing her internal energy flow to forcibly expel the medicinal power of the Exquisite Lotus she had swallowed.

However, this action had caused extremely severe trauma to her body and meridians. At this moment, every part of her felt as if it were being sliced by knives, especially her internal organs, which felt as though they were being fried in oil!

But she paid no heed to the physical agony; the distress in her heart was already immeasurable! When Miao Xiao Miao opened her eyes, the familiar world flooded her sight once more.

Involuntarily, sorrow welled up, and she lay quietly on the bed, tears slowly streaming down her cheeks, soaking the pillow. The intense longing, the deep-seated sweetness she felt before coming here had completely filled her inner world; but within the short half-day at the Evil Monarch’s residence—or perhaps only during that last cup of tea—everything dissolved into thin air following a single sentence spoken by Jun Mo Xie!

Mo Jun Ye was an illusion! Mo Jun Ye did not exist at all, perhaps never had!

If Mo Jun Ye himself was illusory, then his feelings… must also be illusory! Even all his looks and smiles, all his learning and charisma, everything—was everything perhaps just a colossal deception?

Was it all merely a facade constructed for some objective Jun Mo Xie, the Evil Monarch, needed to achieve within the Illusionary Manor? A complete and utter fraud!

The thought of this drove Miao Xiao Miao to utter despair! The existence she valued more than life itself, the one for whom she was willing to give everything, who received the entirety of a woman's love, turned out to be nothing more than a scheme orchestrated by someone else!

Perhaps just a casual game played by some great figure! And she, the former her, had willingly walked right into it; after being rejected, she still hadn’t learned her lesson—only those who hit a dead end finally turn back, but she hit that wall, broke her head bleeding, and kept ramming forward!

She had blindly forced her way in, like a trapped fish struggling into a fishing net already drawn shut by the scoundrel, or a moth shattering the lantern covering a candle to rush toward the tragic, bright flame—so resolute, so foolish! Her heart was torn apart for him, her soul ached with longing, she risked death for him, offered him everything, and for him, she pledged vows for all eternity!

But all of it—every single thing—was a lie! Miao Xiao Miao did not care what Jun Mo Xie’s purpose was for disguising himself and entering the Illusionary Manor; she didn't even think about it.

Because if Jun Mo Xie had a purpose for entering, then everything he did was for himself. Miao Xiao Miao could understand this, completely!

Even an enemy has their own standpoint. She had always been clear on this point.

That is why, when Jun Mo Xie explained himself to her before, she neither questioned nor lashed out; in her heart, there was even a faint thread of envy and jealousy—that he was willing to consider and do so much for his woman… But what she could not accept was… her own utter surrender in this love affair! The only thing she received was deception!

For a young girl in the bloom of youth who had given everything for love, this was the most unacceptable, the most brutally cruel realization! As a maiden, she could accept that the man she loved was an enemy of the world, yet still love him to death; she could know that the man she loved was utterly despicable, condemned by society, yet still be unable to quell her own emotions.

But she could not accept a small deception between the one she loved and herself! Because that was a desecration, a trampling upon true affection!

Therefore, Miao Xiao Miao would rather accept the Mo Jun Ye who never truly existed, allowing him to live forever in her memories, than accept the living, breathing Jun Mo Xie before her! Though Mo Jun Ye was unreal, Miao Xiao Miao believed in the truth of her own feelings.

Because there was a focus, even if illusory. But if she believed that Jun Mo Xie was Mo Jun Ye, it would undoubtedly overturn all her sweetness!

So, Miao Xiao Miao chose denial, stubbornly refusing to admit it! Because as long as Mo Jun Ye existed in her heart, this love still existed!

The root of Miao Xiao Miao’s extreme and resolute choice was ultimately because… she couldn't bear to let go! She couldn't let go of this love!

From the deepest abysses to the furthest reaches, she could never let go of this affection for all time! Thus, she could refuse to forgive Jun Mo Xie, even hate him, but for the phantom Mo Jun Ye, she held not a single word of blame!

Even though these two facts were fundamentally contradictory! This was the true, hidden thought in Miao Xiao Miao’s heart, yet it seemed even she herself did not understand how this thought originated, perhaps she didn't even comprehend what was happening inside her now… She only felt her heart was a tangled mess, impossible to unravel or even describe… Perhaps everyone finds this strange, this type of emotion incomprehensible; but with one analogy, everyone will understand.

It is like online dating in the modern world, where a man deceives a woman on the internet, or vice versa. Regardless of whether this deception was intentional, one thing is certain: to gain the other party's true emotional investment, one must first offer their own feelings!

This, then, is emotional fraud. When one party finally discovers the true face of the other, they will feel burning hatred toward the person on the other side of the screen!

But looking at the silent avatar on the QQ screen, the familiar nickname, they will still feel tender affection, their hearts breaking in two! They might hate the real person to the point of irreconcilable enmity, yet they continue to pour out their sorrow unconsciously toward that illusory nickname.

And that is still an act of emotional offering… Every time this thought arises, they grit their teeth at one specific person, but every time they think of that nickname, their heart aches, and they sink into sorrow… Isn't this inherently contradictory? A soft sound of footsteps approached, and a faint, delicate fragrance drifted as Mei Xue Yan gently arrived at her bedside.

(This chapter includes a four-hundred-word dedication; those who dislike the section on online dating may skip it.) Miao Xiao Miao’s arc, in essence, is about my depiction of an online relationship. Hence, the themes of illusion and intangibility, hence the Misty Illusionary Manor.

In my mind, the Misty Illusionary Manor represents the internet. I too have experienced internet love, and suffered deeply.

Perhaps this section does not meet everyone's expectations, for which I offer my apologies. By writing this section, it felt like overcoming my own inner demons.

Perhaps others will not understand this mindset… As for Jun Mo Xie’s long explanation in the previous chapter, it was excessive. That, too, was a reflection of my own internal thoughts.

I place great importance on feelings! I value them tremendously!

Therefore, in my heart, career and success are less important than my family, less important than the person I love! If I were ever faced with such a choice, I imagine I would say: I love my kingdom, but I love my beauty even more.

Between career and emotion, I think I would choose emotion. This is my stubborn conviction.

I am foolish, many people have told me so, and I admit it myself. Perhaps someone like me will never achieve great things, but I feel I am happy.

My heart is peaceful. For me, that is happiness.

In reality, I am a person who is incapable of deep sentiment yet insists he is sentimental, who claims to cherish the delicate but utterly fails to do so… Isn't that tragic? But my life’s motto has always been: Be able to face one’s conscience without shame; in everything, one must be true to one’s own heart!

Even in death, in the final moments of clarity, I hope not to feel shame or guilt! Someone may wrong me, but I do not wish to wrong anyone else.

This is my aspiration! Perhaps overly idealistic, but as I write these words, I have not changed this belief.